Editor's note

Making a difference

With the FPI Awards just around the corner, the question is who will be Financial Planner of the Year?

Blue Chip spoke to the three finalists, namely Francois le Roux, Janet Hugo, and Mark MacSymon (profiled in this issue), to find out more about their motivations and inspirations. One thing emerged with crystal clarity: what drives top financial planners like these three, over and above anything else, is the ability to make a meaningful difference in the lives of others.

It's not about the money (let those purely interested in financial gain look to other professions): it's about helping people be the best they can be through adopting a sound approach to financial wellness and, ultimately, guiding them to achieve their hopes and dreams.

It's a tremendous responsibility and demands mental and psychological fortitude and flexibility, as well as empathy and judgment, as the financial planner accompanies the client on their financial wellness journey, sharing in their highs and lows alongside them.

To the finalists, good luck, and to all the certified financial planners out there, admiration and respect: you're part of an incredibly important profession without which so many life-time ambitions would remain nothing more than dreams.